
Follow us on Twitter @claretandview // Words by Harry Trend (@HazaTrand)
Aston Villa are back at home this Saturday as they take-on bottom of the league Burton Albion. The Brewers have been struggling of late but have reinforced in the latest transfer window, bringing in the likes of Darren Bent and Jacob Davenport. To learn more about our opponents, I’ve asked Burton fans James Golding (@_jamesgolding)
James Golding is 19-year-old Burton Albion fan and has been since the age of 10 years old – he has also been a season ticket holder for the last 5 years.
How would you rate your season so far out of 10 and why?
5/10. A complete contrast to last season, we started off as expected, keeping our head above water and showing fight and passion in each week. The Carabao cup run saw us play Manchester United away which will probably be the highlight of the season if we don’t stay up. No win at home since September and bottom of the league with the worst goal difference always is a cause for concern. I’m hoping for a major improvement now the transfer window has finished.
Which Burton players should Villa be wary of?
If they were both fit and starting I’d say both Lloyd Dyer and Darren Bent. Lloyd Dyer along with Lucas Akins have been our most consistent players this season and have shown the best form out of our forward players. But with Darren Bent, Villa fans will know all about the threat he can pose when it comes to attacking play and scoring goals.
Would you consider the January transfer window a success for the Brewers?
In terms of the Darren Bent signing and the two promising youngsters on loan from Premier League sides I would say yes, but the fact that they are the only signings we made makes it a very poor January. As well as improvement going forward and needing more goals, we need to shore up the defence, so it would have been nice to see some defensive players come in. Overall an underwhelming transfer window.
If you could, which past Burton player would you bring into the starting XI?
Jackson Irvine without a doubt, our best player and top scorer last season, a huge huge miss.
If you were Nigel Clough and had to sign one Aston Villa player for the Tykes, who would it be?
Does Clough need to be sacked in order for Burton to stay up?
I think we are going to go down regardless of who is in charge, but his negative press in the last month or so is making it impossible to back him. The squad he has assembled isn’t as good as last seasons and that’s showing. If we do somehow stay up I think he needs to move on in the summer and allow a new young manager to come in and do something different. He’s been a great servant to the club over the years, but I think he has reached his limit.
Score prediction for Saturday?
It could be anything with us at the moment, but I’ll go safe and say 3-1 to Villa.